Azanus jesous
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
Azanus jesous, the African babul blue or topaz-spotted blue, is a small butterfly found in Africa, Egypt, Syria, India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar that belongs to the lycaenids or blues family. The male upperside is a paler and much brighter purple than in A. ubaldus, the dark blue tint at the base of the wings is more pronounced. Forewing: without the clothing of specialized hair-like scales so conspicuous in A. ubaldus. Hindwing: with the dark tornal spots very obscure. Forewings and hindwings: with only slender dark anteciliary lines, but no regular brown edging. Underside: dull pale grey. Forewing: costal margin brown, a black white-encircled spot in cell, a dark chestnut-brown streak between vein 12 and subcostal vein; similarly coloured but somewhat paler transverse bars cross the upper discal area of the wing as follows: one on the discocellulars and three beyond, each bar edged internally and externally with white; below this two elongate brownish white-edged spots placed en echelon and beyond a slender, unbroken, transverse, postdiscal brown line; a transverse subterminal series of black spots, each surrounded with white, and a slender anteciliary dark line. In... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilanesberg National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 3 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 4 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an African Babul Blue sighting in Pilanesberg National Park on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 26th most-seen of the 39 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, July and November–December
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report an African Babul Blue in Pilanesberg National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March, May–June and August–October, the lowest months. Those are among Pilanesberg National Park's wettest months, with about 70 mm of rain a month against almost none in August.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most African Babul Blue sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 5 parks where we can rate African Babul Blue sightings, Pilanesberg National Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Ngorongoro Conservation Area (Tanzania, about 10%) and Serengeti National Park (Tanzania, about 10%).
Same family: Lycaenidae
The closest relatives of the African Babul Blue that you can see in Pilanesberg National Park (family Lycaenidae, Gossamer-winged Butterflies) are Leaden Hairtail (about 10%), Cupreous Blue (about 10%) and Castalius melaena (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the African Babul Blue is recorded against all the insects logged in Pilanesberg National Park (8 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
